E-Cig Steampunk Style

Keep loosing of breaking your E-cig body? This could be a solution, almost unbreakable and certainly hard to mis-place...

Simple construction from 22mm copper pipe, two stop ends, a couple of springs, simple push switch, standard battery and a replacement e-cig connector.

Not too technical - a little soldering, three holes to be drilled, one nut, one rivet and some pipe cutting.

The connector can be soldered as shown or with the live center (red wire) only - recommended. This looks neater and is stronger but means you have to solder the connector into the hole in one of the end caps. I used a small butane torch to do this as it would take a more powerful soldering iron to heat the copper stop end. If you only have a soldering iron just make sure the hole is a snug fit and force the connector in as an interference fit.

I forgot to take the picture of the single wire version before soldering it into the end cap and tightening it - I will dismantle or make another at some stage and add the image.

Connect the center red wire to one side of the switch with a some spare length to allow you to fit the button.

Copper is fairly easy to work with. I drilled the holes for the rivet, switch and connector in a bench drill but these can be managed with a hand held drill. None of the positions are precise but it does help to make a mark first with a hammer and punch to start each hole.

To complete the circuit I soldered a small spring to the other connector of the push switch but anything that will not short against the body should make a connection to the live of the battery when it is pressed against it. Holding the switch from turning while I tightened its nut was the most tricky job as only one finger fitted...

Finally I coiled the excess wire from the switch to the vape connector into the tube and attached the stop end. I tightened both stop ends with tools to compress the olives initially, leaving the vapouriser end tight so it cannot be un-done by hand but loosening the battery end to allow removal of the battery for charging. Hand tight is fine at the battery end and creates a good connection to vape.

Comments

[DerStu]

what would you think about using a standard alkaline 9v battery in place of the rechargeable?

[John Davey]

Hi DerSru, I don't think 9v would be a good idea. The rechargeable batteries are only 3.7 volts so I'm sure the coil would burn out much faster at over twice the rated value. There is also a fair amount of current used so the cost of replacing the non-rechargeable batteries could add up very rapidly - I'm charging a spare battery every day!

[bonesthebroken]

the coils dont typically burn out, they get buildup from juice and dry burnt wicking material. most ecigs actually tend to have 4.2v at full charge, many are regulated to output 3.7. i assume with an interest in ecigs you have learned much more. there are many ins and outs, check out ecig forums, useful info there

[DerStu]

thanks, I was thinking of what I could easily scrounge around the house to use before I had to go buy anything, sounds like I should use a different battery holder

[bonesthebroken]

in order for a battery to be used safely, you need to know the amp limits, a standard pre-made coil is usually 1.2-2.5 ohms, using ohms law we find that at 1.2 ohms at 9v the amp draw would be 7.5 amps, so if you were to use a rebuildable coil and the atomizer were to be lower, the amp draw would be higher. depending on the battery amp limits, less resistance would possibly be a dead short, causing catastrophic and even violent battery failure. the best batteries are 18650s or 26650s mnke 3500mah sony vtc4 or 5s and batteries with similar high amp ratings, unless you want a large battery array with parallel cells to improve amp limits.

[Liquid life]

Use imr protected batteries or they can explode in your hand.

[bonesthebroken]

li-ions typically vent, even "unprotected" ones, lithium polymer however will explode, violently.

[epitts2]

any suggestions on where to find a good ecig replacement connector? also, by "connector" do you mean a replacement cartridge or a heating-element/battery-pack that accepts a replacement cartridge?

[John Davey]

A quick search will find many suppliers of E-cig parts, they are also available on popular auction sites - can't remember which I bought from now. What I refer to as the 'connector' seems to be called the 'base' by most shops. These are about £1. The heating element and liquid store or drip tank seem to be called a cartomiser, atomiser or clearomiser and cost a bit over £3. The ones I used are the Ego brand.

[jumper77]

What do you use to keep the positive side of the battery from pushing up? Or just how do you keep it in place?

thanks

[John Davey]

Hi jumper77,

I used a plastic bodied switch and just bent one of the legs towards the battery with a small spring soldered onto it, the other toward the tip connected to the centre wire.

Just stretch or compress the springs to adjust for incorrect spacing.

Unfortunately the switch only lasted a few months and then burnt out. It is very fiddly to replace. I will add an update when I get a good solution.

Please let me know if you find a reliable switch,

Thanks,

John